An Ocean Between Us
by if-you-have-a-minute
Summary: Blaine has been enlisted in the army, much to Kurt's disdain. How will their love survive?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Woooo, Klaine! I know I have another story to finish, but I was inspired and bored with my other one :) Reviews are welcomed! Please note that I have no idea what I'm talking about. I have never been in the army nor have I known anyone in the army... they say write about what you know... Ah well :)**

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><p>Kurt Hummel used to be an avid radio listener. It was, after all, the place to hear the most recent hits of the week. He used to tune in every morning to listen to his favorite talk shows gab about the latest celebrity scandal and Kurt would giggle at the silly things they said. He used to sing along to the classics on the variety stations. But Kurt Hummel had changed a lot in the past three years and one thing that had been left in the dust as Kurt had matured was his energy to listen to the radio. Now he didn't feel like listening to people sing about love, friendship, or whatever it was they wanted to belt out. He didn't care about celebrities or the stupid things happening in their lives. Kurt had been reduced to sitting in morning traffic in complete silence, himself alone with his thoughts, which Kurt had recently learned how to shut up as well.<p>

Kurt blamed his sudden change in behavior on the fact that he wasn't in high school anymore and had matured, but everyone around him knew the truth. They could sense it, that somewhere behind all of the walls he had built around himself, the real Kurt was still there, aching to turn the radio on and blast music through his car.

The change had happened three years ago, two months before Kurt's graduation. Kurt had felt like he had had it all; the full ride to his favorite college, his friends and family, and also his boyfriend, Blaine. They had been together for almost a year and had shown no signs of getting tired of each other. They were both going to go to the same college in New York and even Kurt's stepbrother and his girlfriend, Rachel, were going to school in New York as well. The bullying at McKinley had just about evaporated and Kurt had enjoyed every minute of his senior year. Except, one day in the middle of May, Blaine had rang Kurt's doorbell with bad news. Blaine's father had enlisted Blaine in the army without Blaine knowing and he was to be sent to a base camp somewhere in Europe in a week. Blaine was to stay there for four years.

Kurt was crushed. He could feel the world closing in on him. Suddenly the man he loved was being yanked out of his grasp and taken away for four years and Kurt couldn't do anything about it. He had cried right then and there, in Blaine's arms. They stood in the doorway like that for what seemed like hours. When Kurt had regained enough strength to stand up on him own, he had looked up into Blaine's eyes and had seen that Blaine had also been crying. Before that, Blaine had never shed a tear in front of Kurt.

They had decided to write to each other as often as possible, but that became hard after a while. Kurt was moving into his new dorm in New York and the base camp at which Blaine was stationed had had to stop mail because it was deemed "unsafe". So, after about seven months of being apart, Kurt and Blaine had stopped communication. They decided that it would be too hard for both of them and that maybe, after Blaine came back home, they could get back together. They were both only 19, what could they predict would happen in four years?

Kurt had cried a lot. He cried for silly reasons as well as the obvious one. He had cried over having to leave his favorite pillow at home in Lima, he had cried over the end of the Wizard of Oz, and he had cried over the price of pineapples at the grocery store near his dorm.

After a month had gone by without communication, Kurt decided he needed closure. He needed to forget about his silly high school sweetheart and focus on bigger and better things.

He got his grades back up, he tidied up his dorm room, which had looked like a pig's sty, and he auditioned for any and everything that they advertised on the bulletin board in the lobby of his dorm complex. But, after several failed auditions, Kurt quit. He quit school, he quit trying for parts, he quit talking to his friends, he had even thought about quitting life a few times, but Kurt wasn't that depressed.

Many times Kurt had thought to himself, _You're so weak. He's gone for four years, so what? You're just going to wait around for him like a sad puppy? I'm disappointed in you. _

Kurt gave up all hope.

Now Kurt works at a newspaper company, in their sales department. It's a good job, for someone who didn't get his college degree. He has a few friends, the ladies whose cubicles surround his, and he and his stepbrother Finn go out for dinner a few times a month. Kurt liked to think that he had forgotten about Blaine and everything that related to him; that Kurt was a new man.

He was sadly mistaken.

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><p>Blaine looked at the ratty calendar in his satchel that he hid under his bed.<p>

"Only 370 more days," He whispered to himself.

Blaine had never gotten over Kurt. The lack of communication had almost killed him. He had seriously considered walking onto enemy territory and just lying there, waiting for someone to come and shoot him.

In the army, there was no way of hiding from your own thoughts, of distracting yourself. The men weren't allowed of the base's grounds and didn't have any televisions or even radios. For fun, the men played chess and told raunchy jokes to each other. Blaine had a few friends, after three years they had really grown on him, but Blaine was impossibly homesick. He was too afraid to cry at night for fear of the other guys poking fun at him the next morning.

After Blaine had suggested giving up communication to Kurt, he immediately regretted it. He had even written a letter and was just about to send it when he remembered why he had even brought it up. Every time Blaine finished reading a letter from Kurt, he felt a pang in his chest. It was the pain of loneliness, heartbreak, and hurt. He longed to wrap his arms around Kurt and tell him that it was okay, that he was back and here to stay.

But this was impossible. Blaine was completely in the dark about how his father had enlisted him in the army. He didn't understand how that was possible or even legal. Blaine knew that his father didn't agree with his sexuality, but he didn't know that his father was so serious about "knocking some sense" into him that he would send his son over an entire ocean. Blaine was hurt that his father felt that way; that he would never understand how Blaine felt. But Blaine cared more about Kurt than what his father thought.

He had a small calendar that he kept in his satchel where he would cross of the days as they went by. He had circled the day that marked the end of his tour and was impatiently awaiting its arrival.

Blaine loved America, but considering the fact that it hadn't been his choice to enlist, Blaine didn't want to be in the army. He wanted to be in college, studying alongside his true love.

But that would have to wait just another year.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I'm in love with this story, and I have a few ways I could go with it. Inspiration is everywhere!**

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><p>Kurt sighed in relief as he opened the door to his apartment; <em>finally <em>he could rest. His boss had made him work overtime because Gina the secretary had messed up a few numbers and Kurt had to redo his entire sales report. Kurt set his bag on the kitchen table and walked over to the couch, intending to sit and watch HGTV, but his phone rang from the kitchen and stopped him.

_To answer or not to answer, _Kurt debated. He decided to answer but if the call made him miss Design Star, he was hanging up.

"Hello?" Kurt answered on the fourth ring.

"Kuuuuuuuuuurt this is your faaaaaaaatherrrrr," someone slurred from the other end, "just kidding it is I, Rachel Berry!" Kurt shook his head. Rachel was drunk dialing him.

"Rachel, where on Earth are you?" Kurt heard muffled voices and loud bass coming from the phone.

"I'm at, _hic_, Sherry's! And this guy was just saying some really nice things to me, I'm thinking of getting a, _hic,_caband going home with him." Rachel said through giggles.

"Rachel, I'm coming to pick you up. Don't do anything stupid and don't get into any cars with strange men." The last time Rachel had gotten drunk was their junior year of high school, so Kurt knew something was up.

"I don't know anyone named Stupid, stupid!" Rachel laughed and hung up.

Kurt rolled his eyes. Rachel could be really dumb when she was intoxicated. Kurt eyed the couch longingly while he put his shoes back on. _So much for a relaxing Tuesday night, _he thought. He took the elevator down to the parking garage and pulled out his car keys from his jacket pocket. Kurt had been to Sherry's Bar before, but only once so it was difficult figuring out where to go. Eventually Kurt pulled into the small parking lot and walked through the wooden doors of the bar.

"Kurtsie-Koo!" Rachel yelled when she saw him.

Kurt just rolled his eyes again; he couldn't believe Rachel had the nerve to get this drunk.

"Toodles, boys! My knight in shining armor is, _hic_, here!" Rachel smiled at the three men who waved goodbye from the counter.

Kurt put his arm around Rachel just in time to catch her before she stumbled over her own feet.

"C'mon, Rach, let's get you home to Finn." Kurt suggested.

"No," Rachel said rather sternly, "I don't want him right now. I want food. Fooooooood, Kurt I'm hungry! Kurt, I'm, _hic,_ HUNGRY."

"Whoa, okay, okay, let's find a McDonalds open this late at night." Kurt could still here the word _hungry_ ringing in his ears; Rachel had screamed directly into his eardrum.

Kurt directed her into the passenger side of the car and tried to do her seatbelt for her, but she was shaking her hands all over and he finally gave up. He walked around to his side of the car and opened the door. In the millisecond that Kurt had left Rachel in the car alone, she had reclined her seat all the way so that she was giggling while laying down. Kurt shook his head and turned the car on. Rachel immediately put on the radio and blasted some random rap station. Surprisingly, she new all of the words to the song they were playing and she belted it out through her open window. _Even while intoxicated she can sing_, Kurt noted.

"THERETHERETHERETHERE," Rachel yelled when she saw yellow arches in the distance. She jumped out of the car even before Kurt had cut the engine and she was inside the fast food restaurant before he had taken off his seatbelt. Kurt rolled his eyes for what felt like the fiftieth time that night. _I'm going to get wrinkles if she keeps this up_, he thought.

When he walked in, Rachel was shoving a twenty dollar bill in a random teenagers face and yelling "TWO COFFEES PLEASE".

"Rachel, he doesn't work here," Kurt said as he pulled her away from the scared kid and up to the cash register. They ordered coffees and sat in a booth, one that was as far away from people as possible. The coffee seemed to have an immediate effect on Rachel because she quieted down enough to let Kurt ask her some questions.

"So, how on Earth did you get to that bar anyway?"

"I got on some, _hic_, bus and told the driver where I wanted to go. He didn't have any other, _hic_, customers so he drove me right up to the door!"

"Okay, and why did you want to go to this bar?" Kurt knew he was prying too much but he needed to know.

"Finn and I had a fight." Rachel whispered into the plastic cup.

"Oh, that's a sha-"

"YOU KNOW, MAYBE FINN SHOULD JUST LISTEN TO ME. MORE PEOPLE WOULD APPRECIATE A CLASSIC RATHER THAN A CRAP EIGHTIES POP SONG AT OUR WEDDING!" Rachel burst, her face turning a dangerous shade of purple.

"Rachel, you got completely wasted over a silly thing like song choice at your non-existent wedding? You're not even engaged yet!" Kurt couldn't believe his ears.

"Well, Finn brought it up." Rachel reasoned, swirling a stir stick in her coffee.

"You are so stubborn it hurts, Rachel Berry." Kurt said through a smile that she returned. They finished their coffee and returned to Kurt's car. He drove her back to the building that she and Finn lived in and decided that Rachel wasn't sober enough to find her own way back to her twelfth floor apartment. When Kurt rang the doorbell to the apartment, Finn almost immediately yanked the door open.

"Oh Rachel I'm so sorry, we can dance to whatever you want to at our wedding. I'm so sorry, I didn't know where you were and nobody was answering their phones and I was so worried and- oh, hey Kurt!"

Kurt smiled while Rachel jumped Finn and wrapped her legs around his waist and planted slobbery kisses all over his face.

"Thanks, bro, I know I can always count on you." Finn told Kurt and Kurt only nodded.

As he left the building the only thing on Kurt's mind was, _Gosh, I wish I had someone to do that to, _but he caught himself and didn't let the tears fall that were gathering behind his eyes.

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><p>As a boy, Blaine had rolled around in the grass many times. It was fun and the dizzy feeling you got caused Blaine and his friends to have giggle fits. But now, rolling through bushes wearing heavy clothing and a twenty pound gun on his back, Blaine couldn't see the appeal.<p>

The other men at the camp always spoke of the thrill of being in a war zone, of the high you got off of being in danger. Blaine didn't agree with them at all. Being in that forest, trying not to get shot and die was not at all exhilarating for him. He just wanted to go home, to eat some decent food and curl up on the safety of his couch, but he hadn't been able to do that for three years.

"Anderson, Donavon, get down!" Blaine's captain shouted from somewhere behind the trees. Blaine and his bunk-mate Louie ducked and thank god they did, for several bullet shot through the air that had just been occupied by their heads.

They both rolled about two feet to their left, where they could see a way through the brush. The two men scrambled to their feet and ran as fast as they could to the other group of men in front of them. One man was on the ground, bleeding profusely from his left side and two others were hovering around him, trying to figure out what to do.

"Move!" The captain had come from behind the group with a small and tired looking first aid kit that he kept tied around his waist whenever he went into battle. He began wrapping gauze around the wound and instructed the men to get back to the base as soon as possible and not to let the soldier's spine turn.

They did as they were told and got the wounded man into the nurse's hut as fast as they could. A nurse led them to the nearest empty bed and the soldier was laid there. She quickly started cleaning him and shooed the others out of the way as other nurses came to help.

"I sure hope Hank gets through this," Blaine said softly.

"Yeah, I can't believe the action is just beyond the bases walls. It's scary knowing the enemy is right in our backyard," Louie replied.

Blaine nodded his head in agreement. This was the part he hated the most; the actual going out and shooting things part. He could stand all of the practice drills and climbing up rope and over wooden walls, but Blaine hated violence. Ever since he had been bullied and beat up in high school, Blaine flinched every time he even thought someone was going to hit him. Being at Dalton had been better, because of their anti-bullying policies and then going with Kurt to McKinley was awesome because he had Finn and Puck and the other guys who could stand up for the both of them. But still, Blaine couldn't help the gnawing feeling that he got in the back of his head every time he thought he saw the shadow of an old schoolmate of his.

Being in the army was definitely not for Blaine. Seeing friends of his get injured or even die had tortured Blaine. And now Hank, one of the first friends he made at the base was in critical condition and his wound could get infected rather quickly in these parts of the world. The nurses at the base were constantly troubled with bullet wounds, infections, and basic-we-get-this-all-the-time kinds of sicknesses.

One time, about two years into his tour, Blaine came down with influenza and he had to lie in the nurse's tent for two days. The young woman who was assigned to Blaine was very nice and had even tried to hit on him. _Sorry, you're not my type, _Blaine had thought, but that put his thoughts back on Kurt and it made Blaine sad.

The four men walked back to the bunks and changed into clothes for dinner in silence. They all knew what could happen to Hank, they had seen it happen to other guys who got shot. They could survive the bullet but infections that would go undetected would eat away at their immune systems until they died. Nobody wanted that to happen to Hank.

Blaine shuddered at the thought that it could happen to himself.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: It's been a long time since I've had the free time to sit and think about this story, but I finally found time! I've figured out where it's going to go and I'm excited to see what other people think :) **

**Reviews are totally awesome!**

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><p>Two weeks after Kurt had hauled a very drunk Rachel home, he got a call while eating Thai take-out and watching America's Next Top Model.<p>

"Hello?" Kurt said with a faint sense of déjà vu.

"Kurt, I have a surprise for you!" He recognized the voice as Rachel, dialing him once again. Kurt sighed heavily in reply.

"FINN PROPOSED!" Kurt had to hold the phone away from his ear in order to keep his hearing intact.

"Wow! That's so great! How did it happen? Tell me everything!" Kurt asked, even though he already knew what had happened, as he had been planning with Finn for the past month.

As Rachel relayed the story over the phone, Kurt started doodling in a nearby notebook, barely listening and only muttering a few "Mmhmm, Oh that's so sweet!"s when Rachel paused. With all of the romance talk, Kurt couldn't help his train of thought leading back to his high school sweetheart. He wondered what Blaine was up to now and if he ever thought about the man he left behind. Kurt woke up every morning to a cold bed and empty apartment, and it broke his heart a little bit every time he looked around and realized what his life had come down to.

Once Rachel's story fizzled out, they both agreed on meeting up for coffee the next Thursday to discuss wedding preparations. Kurt hung up the phone and returned to his food that had grown cold and his television show that was wrapping up. After all the take-out was gone and only the late night comedy was on, Kurt decided to go for a walk. He needed some fresh air to clear his head and prepare for the stress that Rachel was about to give him in the coming months.

Pulling on his coat that he had bought especially for these Autumn New York nights, Kurt instantly relaxed and forgot all about work and romance and just focused on getting out the door. His apartment building was located on a street corner, opposite both a pizza place and a comedy club. When he first moved to New York City, Kurt had taken a lot more night walks like this to calm his nerves over school and forgetting the boy who didn't have any choice but to break his heart. But more recently, he had just resorted to plopping himself in front of the television and eating food to relax. Kurt denied the comments made by Rachel and his colleagues that he was "eating through his feelings". He had only gained a few pounds since he left college and Kurt had faith that his hyperactive metabolism wouldn't let him down. One time last winter, Rachel had walked into Kurt's apartment to find him with an empty box of Oreos and 2 half drunk bottles of cherry soda screaming at the latest episode of Keeping Up with the Kardashians. She had suggested seeing a doctor or a therapist because she was afraid that Kurt was suffering from depression, and he had complied for a while, but not for long. After the therapist asked him about people who were special to him, Kurt had walked out the door, vowing never to go back to that silly place that just made him even more sad.

Finally out of his building, Kurt turned onto the street that lead past the comedy club and towards Central Park. The dim street lights guided him towards the 24/7 ice cream parlor down the street that Kurt had frequented many nights before. But, before he could get his hands on a delicious Cake Batter and Crunch bar dish, a few familiar lyrics stopped him. A young man was playing his guitar down the street and Kurt was overcome with emotion.

_I walked across, an empty land_

_I knew the pathway like the back of my hand_

_I felt the earth beneath my feet_

_Sat by the river and it made me complete_

Kurt was immediately taken back to a cool spring day in the McKinley courtyard. His transfer back to WMHS after leaving Dalton Academy was finally official and the Warblers with Blaine in the lead, of course, had sang goodbye in the form of that exact song. Both Kurt and Blaine had cried when the song finished and they had hugged passionately.

Kurt felt the ghost of those warm hands around him and he felt safe but once the street musician finished, the spell was broken and Kurt was slapped back into reality. He felt tears streaming down his face and heard them fall to the ground. He must have been quite a spectacle because several passers by were whispering and one even handed him a tissue.

"Wow, I've never had anyone react that way to my music before," The guitar player said. Kurt looked at his face and was crushed when he didn't see the familiar brown eyes staring back past overly gelled curly hair.

Kurt merely nodded and turned back towards his apartment. His brisk walk turned into a run and the tears were going as fast as his feet.

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><p>That Thursday, Kurt had recovered enough strength after his episode on the street corner to join Rachel for coffee. When he entered the small hut of a café, Kurt saw Rachel in a bright pink tunic with maroon leggings and cowboy boots sitting at a booth towards the back.<p>

"Rachel, I'm almost embarrassed to be seen with you. What on earth are you wearing?" Kurt questioned incredulously.

"I just threw on the first thing in my closet. I was just too excited! Do you know how long I've been waiting for Finn to propose? Ever since sophomore year in high school! And he finally came through, oh Kurt! I'm so happy!" Kurt could hear the exclamation points in her voice.

"I know, Rachel, but a wedding is hard work. I've watched enough Bridezillas to know."

"Kurt, do you even know me? You of all people should know that I am prepared for anything and everything." With this, she pulled out a worn out peacock-feather printed notebook from the brown bag next to her.

"That's very true." Kurt agreed, eyeing the notebook.

"This is my wedding journal. Ever since the sixth grade when I went to my Aunt Jen's ceremony, I've written down my inspirations for the fateful day when I would get married." Rachel opened to a random page that contained several pasted photos of flower sets.

"I should have figured. Have I ever told you how much I admire you?" Kurt smiled for the first time in what felt like a century.

_Maybe this whole assisting-the-bride kind of thing won't be half bad_.

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><p>Blaine leaned into his bunk, holding his small calendar close to his heart. <em>Less than a year,<em> he told himself. In less than a year he'd be in the Lima, Ohio airport, calling Kurt's old cell phone number, praying he would pick up. In less than a year, Blaine hoped he would be packing his clothes from his parent's old house and moving to where ever the heck Kurt wanted him to move.

In less than a year he'd be able to apologize profusely to the boy who had turned into a man without him. He'd be able to beg and plead in person, if only to see Kurt and cherish his presence.

"So, who do you think will be the first to give, Cap'n or James?" a voice entered Blaine's tent.

He quickly wiped the tears that were threatening to run across his face, and hid the calendar under his mattress.

"Well, judging by the fact that the Captain's made of stone, probably… Oh, Hiya Blaine!" Louie said when he realized that he and Hank were not alone.

Hank had pulled through the small operation that the nurses had to do in order to remove the bullet from his left hip and, after almost four weeks, he was back up and joking with the guys once again.

"Hey, we're going down to the pit soon, you coming?" Louie asked.

Blaine nodded and stood up straight. The last Saturdays of every month were the days where all of the army men would gather around a bonfire and tell jokes and share stories and even sing a little if one of them happened to be musical, which Blaine most definitely was.

"I'll grab my guitar and meet you down there in ten, okay?" Blaine told the other guys.

"Sure thing, brother!" Louie said as both men left as soon as they had come.

Blaine reached under his cot for the small guitar that the Captain had lent him. Blaine knew that guitar like the one he had left back home, which was very well. Ever since that first Saturday bonfire, the Captain insisted that Blaine sing a few songs as to lift the other men's spirits. Secretly, Blaine knew that the Captain missed his radio just as much as everybody else did and would do anything for a bit of tunes on the camp.

Ten minutes later, Blaine took his usual spot on a log next to Louie and set the guitar down next to him. George, a man from bunk 217, was spinning a tale about how his ex-wife had once taken a knife to all of the flowers in her garden and tied them to the Christmas lights that hung year-round in their daughter's room.

"She woke up that morning to a fresh scent and a crazy woman leaning over her with a sticky butter knife. She just about died!" George chuckled.

All the men joined in the laughter, but Hank stopped it once he noticed Blaine sitting with his guitar.

"Hey, Blaine's here with his guitar! What are your requests, gentlemen?"

There were shouts of _Ice Ice Baby _and _Baby Got Back_, but one small man, who was recently enlisted leaned over and asked Blaine quietly, "Do you happen to know _How Deep Is Your Love_ by the Bee Gees? It was my girlfriend's and my song and I'd really like to hear it."

"Yeah, I love that song!" Blaine nodded.

"Alright, alright! Calm down, everyone. Blaine has a song!" Hank hushed the crowd.

Blaine started strumming quietly until the only sound heard was the soft hum of the guitar. The men held their breath in anticipation.

_I know your eyes in the morning sun_

_I feel you touch me in the pouring rain_

_And the moment that you wander far from me_

_I wanna feel you in my arms again_

_And you come to me on a summer breeze_

_Keep me warm in your love and then softly leave_

_And it's me you need to show_

_How deep is your love_

Blaine's thoughts trailed off to where it was inevitably headed: Kurt. The music coming from the instrument and his mouth almost seemed foreign to the lost feeling that was coiling in Blaine's heart. He wondered how Kurt would react when Blaine finally called him up after five years without face to face contact. He wondered whether Kurt had finished college and had gotten his degree, or if he had followed his dreams and became a fashion designer or had gotten one of the parts he had auditioned for. Blaine wondered how Kurt would look. Maybe he would have more prominent cheekbones and he had grown into his height. The thought of premature wrinkles crossed Blaine's mind but the thought was whisked away with Blaine remembering Kurt's religious moisturizing routine.

When the song came to an end Blaine looked around and saw that all of the men looked very solemn and homesick.

"It reminds me of Kara." Louie said so softly that only Blaine heard. Kara was Louie's girlfriend back in Tennessee and they had tried to make their relationship work but, similar to Blaine and Kurt's, it couldn't weather the long distance.

Blaine gave him an encouraging pat on the back and looked to the Captain for help. He noticed and ushered the other men back to their cabins.

Finally, Blaine was the last one left around the dying fire, staring into its embers.

"C'mon, kid, it's getting cold." The Captain awkwardly shook Blaine's shoulder. Blaine nodded and picked up the guitar.

"I know you don't like being here, but less than a year, Blaine. Remember that." Those were the Captain's parting words as Blaine entered his tent and felt something small and wet fall from his eye to his chin.

Blaine wasn't one to cry in front of the Captain but being overcome with heart ache does that to a man sometimes.

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><p>Songs: Somewhere Only We Know - Keene (not sure if that's how you spell it or not?)<p>

How Deep Is Your Love - Bee Gees


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